Wallpapers are a great way to spruce up the interiors of any space. Whether it is a home, an office, or even a kitchen, the right wallpaper has the potential to breathe brand new life into the walls of such interior spaces.
The best part is, wallpapers are much more cost effective than other alternatives. Visiting the right wallpaper shop will provide you with a virtually endless choice of designs to choose from, that can help you create a variety of different atmospheres within the room in question. Cheaper than painting a space, wallpapers are perfect for a low-cost home or office renovation project.
However, since wallpapers cover your walls, they are regularly subject to dust, sunlight, and other pollutants that are often suspended within the air. Even if you have an air purifier, your walls are bound to collect at least some amount of dust and grime. Over time, this can get collected and cause damage to your wallpapers.
Since wallpapers are a cheaper alternative, they are more delicate than painted walls and can easily get damaged. However, the good thing is, stains on wallpapers are much easier to get rid of, than stains on a painted wall.
With that said, cleaning and caring for a wallpaper is a delicate job that must be handled with utmost care. Otherwise, in your bid to keep your walls and wallpapers clean, you may end up causing severe, and sometimes permanent damage to your wallpapers.
With the right care, however, the lifespan of wallpapers can be maximised, turning them into a smart, dependable, and aesthetic investment for any interior space.
In this article, we will be discussing the ways in which you can keep your wallpapers clean and maintain them to maximise their lifespan.
However, since there are several different types of wallpapers available in the market, we will be discussing each one in short detail.
Let us begin:
Vinyl Wallpapers
Vinyl wallpapers are the most commonly used wallpapers, all thanks to their versatility. Under vinyl wallpapers, there are three more categories:
- Solid Sheet Vinyl: These wallpapers are by far the most durable variety, thanks to their thickness and materials used. Cleaning a solid sheet vinyl wallpaper is a simple task. Simply use a wet sponge to clean stains and give it a do-over with a dry cloth to make sure more dust doesn’t collect on the wet surface.
- Vinyl Coated Fabric: As then name suggests, these are fabric wallpapers that are covered with a coat of vinyl. These are often used in spaces where the texture of the walls is an important aspect of the aesthetic. These wallpapers can be cleaned in exactly the same way as the solid sheet vinyl wallpapers.
- Vinyl Coated Paper: These are traditional paper wallpapers that are covered with a coat of vinyl. Perfect for high humidity environments, these often find applications in kitchens and washrooms. These wallpapers can be cleaned with a solid dry cloth wipe.
These wallpapers may be cleaned with warm water and mild soap, in order to prevent discolouring. For tougher stains, the use of stronger detergent agents is recommended. However, these should be used sparingly and should be tested on a smaller surface before being used to clean the whole wall.
No matter how persistent the stain is, it is strongly recommended to stay away from abrasive sponges as these can potentially cause permanent damage to the wallpapers.
To extend the life of the pre-plastered wallpapers, it is recommended to cover them with a coat of water based polyurethane. This coat should be applied on the wallpaper on an annual basis for best results.
Non-Woven Wallpaper
Non-woven wallpapers are another popular category of wallpapers that are not vinyl based. These are extremely durable and can be washed easily with water and soap.
As a result of the same, non-woven wallpapers don’t collect mould. The best part is, non-woven wallpaper does not tear easily and when pulled out, usually comes out in a single strip.
If you have any structural renovations planned, you can simply take your non-woven wallpaper off, and put them back on after the renovations are done.
Pre-Plastered Wallpaper
The term “pre-plastered” simply means that the wallpaper does not need additional adhesive at the time of the installation as there is dry glue present on the back-side of the wallpaper.
The pre-plastered variety of non-woven wallpapers is known as easy-walls wallpaper.
While cleaning pre-plastered or easy-walls wallpaper, you can follow the instructions given in the previous sections. The only change you need to keep in mind is to clean them from bottom to top, to protect the headboards and adhesive areas.
Grasscloth Wallpaper
Grasscloth wallpaper is made with purely natural components. While this makes grasscloth wallpaper an environmentally responsible choice, their maintenance is a bit more complicated than other wallpapers.
These need to be exclusively cleaned with a vacuum cleaner and if there are any serious stains, they need to be spot treated with mild detergent.
For persistent stains, it is recommended to seek help from a professional that knows more about the maintenance of a grasscloth wallpaper.
These wallpapers are generally more expensive and delicate than other wallpapers mentioned in this article. In fact, some expensive varieties of wallpapers may only be cleaned by a professional and even using a vacuum cleaner is not recommended.
More information about these can be acquired from your local wallpaper supplier in delhi.
Conclusion
So these were the different types of wallpapers that the various methods you can care for them to extend their lifespan.
Do you have wallpapers at your home or office? Which variety do you have? How do you care for them? Share with us in the comment section below.